EDITORIAL OBSERVATIONS. 339 
fill up the vacancy, which was done by the election of Mr. 
W. H. Coates, the present Secretary. 
“ The Council, in its anxiety to elevate and improve the 
position of the profession, has initiated a course of action, 
with a hope of ultimately obtaining at the hands of Par¬ 
liament such assistance as will ensure to the members of the 
Royal College the exclusive right to the name of Veterinary 
Surgeon, and such exemptions as are enjoyed by the members 
of the medical profession, and it earnestly invites the co¬ 
operation of the veterinary public. 
“ During the past year science has lost its most illustrious 
and foremost patron, in the death of the late great and good 
Prince Consort. Your representatives, participating in the 
national and universal sorrow, placed the expression of their 
deep sympathy and condolence at the foot of the throne, and 
received a gracious acknowledgment from the Right Plon. 
the Secretary of State. 
“‘To the Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty. 
“ ‘ May it please your Majesty, 
“ ‘We, the President, Vice-Presidents, and Council of the Royal College 
of Veterinary Surgeons, actuated by the feelings which now move the 
hearts of your Majesty’s subjects, desire humbly to approach your Royal 
presence with sentiments of the most reverent affection and heartfelt sym. 
pathy with your Majesty, on the melancholy occasion of the decease of his 
Royal Highness the Prince Consort. 
“‘Never has a bereavement struck so deeply into the hearts of a sor¬ 
rowing people. 
“‘In the sacred relations of domestic life, by his distinguished abilities, 
earnest devotion, and untiring zeal for the national welfare, the late 
illustrious Prince commanded the admiration and won the esteem of all 
classes of your Majesty’s subjects. 
“‘We cannot too fully appreciate the vast benefits which have resulted 
from the great interest ever taken by the late lamented Prince in the 
progress of medical improvement in all its branches, and from the great 
encouragement afforded by him to the various schools of science, literature, 
and art. 
“ ‘ That the Cod of all consolation may comfort, support, and bless your 
Majesty, and that you may long continue to reign over a faithful and 
devoted people, is the earnest prayer of your Majesty’s most loyal and 
obedient subjects. 
“‘By order of the Council, given under our common seal, this 31st 
day of January, 1862, in the presence of 
“ ‘ E. R. SILVESTER, 
“ ‘ President 
